Panama Papers: ‘Cameron should go before MPs on Monday’

Kate Proctor, Westminster Correspondent

In an opinion piece for the Yorkshire Post Labour’s shadow cities minister Richard Burgon demands David Cameron issues a statement to Parliament on Monday over his tax affairs.

The Leeds East MP said: “It is simply morally wrong if those who govern us – and their multinational corporation friends - don’t pay tax like the rest of us. Especially when the Conservative Government pretends it’s necessary to cut funding to Leeds City Council and other councils in our region by more than half.

“The truth could only be avoided and evaded for so long. After four days of refusing to come clean, the Prime Minister has now finally been forced to admit he directly benefited from Blairmore – a company which for 30 years paid no tax to the Exchequer.

“David Cameron took the political decision not to raise a finger to save the British steel industry but in 2013 had the motivation to personally intervene to undermine EU efforts to clamp down on tax avoidance. The public deserves to know whether David Cameron or his family were benefitting directly or indirectly in 2013 when he was pushing to prevent EU measures to better regulate trusts as a way of clamping down on the tax avoidance which deprives the public purse of the money we need for our schools, hospitals and to get the deficit and debt down.

“I believe David Cameron needs to put the record straight and issue a statement to Parliament on Monday.

“Failure to issue a statement will give rise to further questions about whether the Prime Minister himself has breached the Ministerial Code.

“We can’t let this ongoing moral crisis at the heart of the ‘modern’ Conservative Party further undermine public trust in the office of Prime Minister or the principle that those who govern us should pay tax like the rest of us.

“David Cameron and George Osborne used to be fond of saying “We’re all in it together”. Sadly, it’s starting to sound less and less like an election slogan and more and more like a confession.”